It is well known to the skilled artisan that a metal oxide coating placed on a glass substrate will, in most instances, change the amount of light transmitted through the glass substrate, and also will change the color of the glass substrate when viewed. The metal oxide coating on the surface of the glass will also change the chracteristics of the way in which light is reflected from the coated surface.
In general, these coated glass articles are manufactured by spraying a solution of mixed metal acetylacetonates onto a heated glass substrate. The glass substrate must be heated to a temperature sufficient to cause volatilization of the organic portion of the sprayed solution so that the coating left behind is that of the oxides of the various metals making up the spray solution. It is also generally well known in the art that the thickness of the coating on the glass substrate is in the range of from about 400 angstroms to about 500 angstroms in order to get a uniformity in the coating that provides the required coloration and, also, which provides to the glass substrate the desired transmission and reflectance characteristics.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,296,004 and 4,101,705 disclose identical glass compositions of a so-called neutral bronze color. Neutral bronze glass having a transmission level above 70% is now marketed in the European countries for automotive applications. Stylists in the United States are also looking at this color as a potential color for use in automotive glazings. Both of the mentioned patents, however, develop this particular color by putting the coloring elements in the glass composition itself. Such a color is generally defined as a body colored glass.